Honoring our Fallen Heroes Act of 2025

[Cross, Steve]

Dear Tennessee Fire Service Members,

The President of the United States signed the Honoring our Fallen Heroes Act last night enabling certain cancers to be considered eligible injuries under the Public Safety Officers Benefits program.  While the US Department of Justice will need to establish the procedural process and documentation requirements over the next couple of months, the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation Local Assistance State Team in Tennessee is establishing a list of deceased firefighters that may qualify for this benefit.

Please note that this appears to also cover deceased retirees diagnosed with cancer within 15 years of working in the firefighting role.  

If you know of an active or retired firefighter that died of a cancer listed below that fits within the duty parameters, please advise me at Paul.T...@TFFC.org by sending me the name of the deceased; Next-of-Kin name, address and phone number; name of the fire department that they served; and the type of cancer that the Firefighter died from.  I do not want any of our heroes or their families to fall through the cracks.

 

Here are the key points in the legislation:

• The firefighter death occurred on or after 01 January 2020 as a result of one of the listed cancers below.
• The deceased began serving as a Firefighter not fewer than 5 years before the date of the diagnosis with an exposure-related cancer.
• The deceased was diagnosed with the exposure-related cancer not more than 15 years after the last date of active service as a firefighter.
• Here are the cancers that are covered:
• bladder cancer;
• brain cancer;
• breast cancer;
• cervical cancer;
• colon cancer;
• colorectal cancer;
• esophageal cancer;
• kidney cancer;
• leukemia;
• lung cancer;
• malignant melanoma;
• mesothelioma;
• multiple myeloma;
• non-Hodgkins lymphoma;
• ovarian cancer;
• prostate cancer;
• skin cancer;
• stomach cancer;
• testicular cancer;
• thyroid cancer;
• any form of cancer that is considered a WTC-related health condition under section 3312(a) of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300mm–22(a))

I am expecting that our team will get very busy with this because we could have a BUNCH of active and retired firefighters eligible for Federal Public Safety Officer Benefits under this law.  Getting them onto this list will depend upon you.  Please help us reach these families.

This may also make them eligible to be honored at the National Fallen Firefighters Memorial -- and if so, will make them eligible to be listed on the Tennessee Fallen Firefighter Memorial as well.

Please remember to send the deceased name; Next-of-Kin name, address and phone number; name of the fire department that they served; and type of cancer from which they died to Paul.T...@TFFC.org.

PAUL N. TRUMPORE, SR., Executive Director

Tennessee Federation of Fire Chaplains

Coordinator, Local Assistance State Team - Tennessee

National Fallen Firefighters Foundation

Paul.T...@TFFC.org

865-805-2890